OUT OF AFRICA with Mel & Talia

For decades Mel Doyle has used her profile to turn attention to a cause close to her heart. Now her 18-year-old daughter, Talia, joins her quest. They invite The Weekly to ride along on an eye-opening and emotional journey.

- TIFFANY DUNK

A flash of hand-knitted yellow cardigan sighted through the church fence marks the start of a day which has been years in the making for Melissa Doyle and her daughter, Talia Dunlop.

As their World Vision sponsor child cautiously rounds the corner clutching her mother’s hand, emotions quickly spill over; tears misting the eyes of all there to bear witness. While Talia bends down to hand four-year-old Bridget a stuffed koala bear, Mel and Fraciah embrace, two strangers brought together by their love for their children and their hopes for their future.

“I’m so happy and I don’t know how to express it,” Fraciah says as the two women step back from their hug, “but I am thankful.” Then all turn their attention to Bridget who – over the course of their afternoon visit – slowly morphs from shy to exuberant, singing for her visitors, drawing pictures, writing out the alphabet and happily playing games.

This is a scene Mel has witnessed several times in her 20-year stint as a World Vision ambassador; albeit one that never gets less affecting. For 18-year-old Talia – who joined the charity as a youth ambassador in 2019 before COVID-19 scuppered her debut trip the following year – it’s been a revelation. Not only of the work her mother has been quietly undertaking for two decades but also of the impact their sponsorship is having on this community, and many others around the world.

Mel and Talia have invited